Hector Rebaque

Hector Rebaque arrived in Europe in 1974 hoping to make a name for himself in motor racing. From a wealthy background, Rebaque was able to buy his way into a Formula Atlantic drive and after that Formula 2. He made an impression by finishing fourth in only his second race but the rest of the 1976 season was less successful and the following year he went to the United States to race Atlantics.

In 1977 he bought his way into the Hesketh team but qualified only once in six attempts and concluded that the best thing to do in 1978 was to buy better equipment. He set up his own team and purchased an ex-factory Lotus 78. He did not always qualify but he did manage to finish sixth at the German GP. The following year he bought another old Lotus but, frustrated at not being helped by the factory, commissioned Penske Cars to build him his own F1 car, based on the Lotus. This appeared at the Italian GP in 1979 but did not qualify. Rebaque raced it at the Canadian GP but then failed to qualify again at Watkins Glen.

Frustrated by the whole business he closed down the team and sat out the first part of the 1980 season. In the midseason he replaced Ricardo Zunino in the second Brabham and showed some moderately good form in the second half of 1980 and in the course of 1981. For 1982 Brabham hired Riccardo Patrese to partner Nelson Piquet and Rebaque was left without an F1 drive. He went to America and drove a Forsythe Racing March in CART, winning at Elkhart Lake when Al Unser's Longhorn ran out of fuel a couple of miles before the finish.